It's Hard To Live in The City
by BeginToHope786
Summary: After a year, Rouge returns home a changed person. Tikal could care less because she's finally Queen B, Sonic is confused about love, Shadow knows every secret, and newcomers Knuckles and Amy wonder if being apart of this world is really worth it. Is it ?


**Hello. I wish to make this as short as possible but I will get to the basics as of now. This is, indeed, my first fanfiction and the duration of how long it will be unknown; but I do know how I want to start this story and I do know how I want to end it. Now, without further ado, let us begin!**

As Rouge exited John F. Kennedy International Airport, she felt an uneasy feeling in her stomach. She has been away from home for a year, the conflict that made her flee her family, friends, school, social life, et cetera is highly confidential; for it could tarnish the image of her old money family who hold a great name, in not only the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but throughout the rest of New York.

No pressure, right ?

This conflict haunts Rouge every night but slowly, and surely, she has overcome it. That is what brings her home today.

Rouge grabbed her Louis Vuitton suitcases (that were her "going away" gifts from her mother) and removed her iPhone(which was another "going away" gift from her mother's former fiance') from her teal Balenciaga day purse. It was 4:39pm; she arrived earlier than she was supposed to. Rouge scrolled the contacts screen to the name that read, "Mom."

Its been a whole year since she's called this number, and Rouge wondered if the woman that held Rouge in her uterus for nine months and also exiled her out of their 61st Street townhouse had sounded different. She hesitantly pressed the call button, but soon she heard the telephone ringing.

_"Mom, don't pick up. Please, don't pick up. Let Tails answer, please let Tails answer."_ Rouge thought while she listened to the third ring. Tails was her half-brother that was always on her side no matter how obvious it was that it was Rouge's fault, he was also the one that didn't want to send her away to "boarding school." Boarding school was just some stupid lie to make sure that all of the elite families didn't ask anymore questions on Rouge's eerie disappearance.

"Oh, honey ! Welcome back ! How are you ? I'll send Elijah right over ! Talk to me once you get home. Love you. Bye !"

Rouge pulled the iPhone from her ear and glanced at the screen. 9 seconds.

_"That's a new record. Don't expect mother to talk longer than a minute. Hey, at least she sounds the same...."_

After waiting 30 minutes, Rouge's family driver, Elijah had shown up in the black, sleek limo. The maroon cat was in the correct uniform; black suit, white shirt, black loafers, the white gloves he was forced to wear, and whichever color tie he had chosen to wear that day. Today it was Rouge's favorite color, purple. He got out of the vehicle, opened the backseat door for Rouge and led each Louis Vuitton suitcase carefully into the trunk. Rouge gracefully entered the limo, and closed her door. Once Elijah was finished, he did the same as she.

While adjusting his tie in the mirror, Elijah smiled at Rouge's reflection, and said in his thick bronx accent,

"Welcome back, Rouge. We all missed ya. Glad to see ya back in the city ! I must say though....since you left, the scandal meter has increased."

Rouge gave a frustrated sigh and responded with, "Oh great."

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"So, Sonic. Did you hear the news ?" Shadow asked as he walked through the hallway of his best friend's penthouse apartment holding two glasses of scotch in his hands.

"What news are you talking about ?" Sonic answered. He was completely clueless about any news, well news that he actually cared about. Everyday there were little, frivolous stories about Manhattan's elite, he included. But that had started once she left. He secretly had been involved in an affair with her. Why it had to be kept secret, you ask. Well his secret lover was best friends with his girlfriend, but yes, he loved his girlfriend; and Rouge also.

"Rouge is back." Shadow said as he entered the room where Sonic sat resting on the velvet couch watching some indie film.

"What !" Sonic blurted out. He paused the movie and held his hand out for the glass Shadow was carrying. Yeah, he was going to need a drink.

"You heard correct. Ding-dong. The bitch is back." Shadow handed him the scotch, why Sonic was so surprised; he was supposed to act as if he didn't know; he didn't know what had happened with Sonic and Rouge the day of Tikal's birthday party, what they did in Tikal's mother's bathtub, or in which position made it possible for them to do so. Oh, right. He knew nothing, how believable !

_"How nasty."_ Shadow thought to himself, smirking. _"Never thought Sonic was the type to cheat on his girlfriend..especially on her birthday !"_

But Shadow never knew a thing, and Sonic didn't know that Shadow knew something, but that is because Shadow acted as if he knew nothing. However, we know that is not true because Shadow is dubbed as "The All-Seeing Eye" when it comes to Manhattan's elite. And when is "The Eye" ever wrong ?

"But since when ?" Sonic didn't know whether or not to be overjoyed or scared for his life. Overjoyed because his exciting sex life with Rouge might resume now since she is back in the Upper East Side or scared for his life because even though his virgin queen of a girlfriend Tikal was well, pure, she can be as devious as she wishes when it comes to revenge and such a bitch when she finds out that her popularity at St. Veronica of Mercy is at stake.

**Ding-dong the bitch is back ? How about, ding-dong the bitch in Tikal might be awaken.**

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"Dad ! My first day of school at St. Veronica of Mercy is tomorrow and I have absolutely NOTHING to wear !" Amy yelled throughout the Brooklyn-located loft apartment in which she, her father, her mother, and her brother had lived in for most of their life as a family.

"Amy. I'm not sure you knew this...but umm, the Catholic All-girls school, St. Veronica's..yeah, they have something called a UNIFORM !" Knuckles was easily annoyed by his sister's ignorance. "I see you didn't bother reading the handbook. Right, Ames ?"

He and his sister were complete opposties, starting with the fact that they had different exteriors. He was an echidna and she was a hedgehog. He was red, she was pink. His eyes are purple, hers are green. They shared the same parents but their parents were also different. The father, Max, was a red hedgehog with green eyes and the mother, Susan, was a purple echidna with purple eyes. But even though their children share the same blood, they're still two completely different people. Amy is a free spirit, while Knuckles is more of the sensitive, bookish type. I can go on and on about how much they contrast.

"Nope. I don't give a damn about that thing. Its boring, full of rules, and actually makes me want to listen to you. You know ? Just to pass the time." Amy stuck her tongue out at older brother.

Susan had exited the small kitchen and entered the living room where her children were fighting.

"Amy, the dean at St. Veronica of Mercy is very strict and I doubt that she would accept the way you're acting towards your brother. So cut it out !"

"Thanks, mom. Oh, and just to let you know, I read St. Leo's handbook. Yeah, it was boring and full of rules but I stuck it out and read all 438 pages of that crap because I wanted to know all about my new school." Knuckles gave Amy an "Oh yeah ! Whatcha gonna do about it, son !" expression.

"Knuckles, stop being a suck-up. And why is it that you guys can never get along ?" Max knew for a fact that his children never got along in life, even when Amy was 2 and Knuckles was 4, they were always arguing about something.

"Oh who cares, Dad. But Dad, the thing I do care about is, why did you have to enroll us into some Upper East Side prep-school that I'm sure is full of rich, snobby people that me and Knuckles could never relate to. Like I'm sure that the girls are like..super mean !"

Knuckles rolled his eyes at his sister's adjective. "Like I'm sure that the girls are like super mean !" He mimicked her high-pitched voice and hand gestures when saying what she had said.

"Knuckles ! Stop !" Amy lunged her small fist into her brother's arm and continued to jab it into his upper bicep. She may be small and might look frail, but Amy is no fourteen year old girl to mess with.

"Ow ! Ow ! Ow ! Amy !" Knuckles pushed his younger sister away from him.

To keep Amy from fighting back, Susan held onto her, "You two need to stop ! And I'm serious ! Amy, tomorrow you will be a freshman ! And Knuckles, you will be a junior ! So start acting like it ! I'm sure you'll encounter some snobby teenagers but I'm also sure that you'll meet someone nice, that you wish you could befriend and later on, you and whoever that person may be will be best friends and take on the snobby kids together !"

"Ok. Mom. You're acting a bit too weird now." Knuckles said.

"Yeah. I agree. Like that last line, who do you think you are ? Wonderwoman ?" Amy and Knuckles started to laugh.

"I can never do anything right ! Max, talk to them. I have to check on the dinner." Susan went back to the kitchen and Max leaned on the arm of their sofa.

"Alright, guys. I think you knew what your mom was trying to say, so I won't have to do any further explaining but what I want you guys to do is iron your uniform for tomorrow and prepare your school bags. Can you do that ? And please stay about 10 feet away from each other so that we can avoid the fighting !"

"Sure can do, Dad !" Knuckles responded.

**Now, why can't the elite follow rules like the Brooklyn-ites ?**

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"Oh, Mees Tee-kal. Oh, Mees Tee-kal !" Loretta, Tikal's personal maid, had been pounding on Tikal's bedroom door for a full hour calling her name. During this time, Tikal has tried to block her out with loud music but Loretta hasn't got the point, so Tikal has no other choice, but to answer the door.

Tikal opened the door with a great force. "Loretta ! What is it ?! It better be important ! Because I hope you know you're wasting my relaxation time before the first day of school. Relaxation is very important, Loretta. Look what happens when you don't get enough of it ! You're the perfect example."

"Mees Tee-kal. Eet es berry amportant !" Loretta's look was serious and she seemed to want to enter the room. Tikal opened the door wider and stepped out of the way for Loretta to enter.

"Well, go on and say it Loretta ! I'm waiting !" Tikal picked up her iHome remote and put the current song on pause. She began to tap her foot impatiently. While doing so, she caught a glance of herself in the full-length mirror. She was wearing a pair of dark-washed skinny jeans that were cuffed on the ankle and Sonic's black and grey striped Armani sweater that fit her big but she liked the look. Her wavy ends were reminding Tikal to straighten her naturally chesnut hair for tomorrow. Then Tikal looked at the sterling silver promise ring that was on her left hand, ring finger. Sonic had given Tikal that ring when they were eigth graders, it was the first time that he told her that he loved her. Ever since then Tikal had always known that she and Sonic were destined to be married and that he would always be true to her.

But we know a different story, now don't we ?

"- es beck !" Loretta had finished, but Tikal had paid zero attention to what Loretta had been saying. Tikal had to get used to interpreting Loretta's words since her accent was so thick but Tikal is now the master of doing so.

"Rewind, Loretta ! Who's back, you say ?"

"Roooo !"

"Roo ? I don't recall anyone by the name of Roo. Possibly a friend of mother's. Well, thank you Loretta for wasting my time because that was most certainly NOT important ! Goodb-"

"Mees Tee-kal ! Noo ! Es not Roo es en you mathor's friend ! I mean Roo ! ROO !"

"Loretta ! Yes, I got it ! Roo ! Roo ! Now dismiss yourself ! You're really starting to bother me !" Tikal was pushing the foreign plump woman out of her room but Loretta was restraining.

"Mees Tee-kal !! I mean, Roog ! ROOG !!" Loretta pointed at the picture of Rouge and Tikal on Tikal's memo board. "Eetz her ! Sheez beck !!"

"WHAT ?!" An explosive anger caused Tikal to push Loretta out of the room with no problem and she slammed the door shut. "She can't be back ! She can't show her face and think its all good between us ! Who leaves to boarding school but doesn't say goodbye to their best friend ?! And which boarding school enrolls someone in the middle of October ?!" Tikal led out a loud scream. She took the picture of herself and Rouge off the memo board and tore the photo in half.

As she stormed over to her garbage to throw out the picture, Tikal caught another glance at herself but this time, mascara was running down her cheeks, her hair was a mess, and Sonic's sweater was falling off her shoulder. She punched the mirror and the glass had shattered. Tikal looked at her bloody fist and grew even more angry. She quickly pulled Sonic's sweater over her head and threw it onto her bed, she made her way to the bathroom but saw her reflection in her vanity mirror. The mascara streaks were drying, her hair grew even more messier, but she noticed something. Her stomach was slowly growing a bulge. Tikal began to punch the bulge with her bloody fist and soon the blood was all over her stomach. Tikal wiped her hand on her forehead leaving a trace of blood on her face, and hesitantly made her way to the bathroom.

Tikal knew that she wasn't mad at Rouge for not only saying goodbye, but for other reasons, too. Rouge was prettier than she was, she was more fun than she was, she was more fashionable than she was; point blank and simple, Rouge was better than Tikal. Everyone loved Rouge, but when Rouge left, everyone made a transition to loving her shadow, Tikal. Tikal was not going to let her popularity and social life end all because everyone's once beloved Upper East Side rose, Rouge had returned.

Tikal lifted the toilet seat, grabbed the pink toothbrush from the sink, and turned the faucet on. She bent down near the toilet and held the side of the bristles in her hand. She slowly put the toothbrush into her mouth and continued to put it in farther and farther, making herself gag until it all came out. She continued to let all of her troubles exit her body through her mouth for the next two minutes. Tikal dropped the toothbrush and flushed the toilet. She closed the toilet seat and turned off the faucet. This was all a regular routine for her. She did this whenever she felt bad about herself.

As Tikal exited her bathroom, she walked into her bedroom and found Sonic sitting on her bed holding his sweater. He was looking at the floor. Tikal was shocked. No one knew she did this. But Sonic, her boyfriend, was the least person she wanted to find out about what she was doing.

Tikal continued to walk towards him and when she got near him, she placed her small hands on his shoulders. She noticed her injured hand had stopped bleeding.

"I'm sorry." Was all Tikal had to say.

"You need to get help for this." Sonic said as he dropped the sweater and let his hands hold her bare hips. It came to Tikal's attention that since she took off his sweater, she was now only in her jeans and her pink bra. She and Sonic never had sex, but they almost always did..they just never came around to it. Tikal was reminded of how they always get to the point of where the panties come off but she could never get through it and Sonic always understood. So, now with him holding her hips, she felt that it was the time to no longer be the virgin queen.

"I don't want to get help for this." Tikal suddenly fought the urge to cry, but she knew that it was only Sonic, and that her guard can go down whenever she is with him. The tears began to fall. "No one knows. I don't want to tell them now. They won't understand. I'll stop. I really will, but please, don't tell my mother or anyone else." She sat onto his lap and let her head rest on his shoulder as the tears continued to come down.

"Its alright. I won't tell them. But you must stop, please. For me, for everyone. For everyone who cares about you, Tikal. And whenever you feel the need to, just call me. I'll always be there." Sonic placed his hand under Tikal's chin and rose her face to the same length as his. He moved in to kiss her, but Tikal shook her head. Sonic understood why though, she had just finished vomitting and didn't want him to smell the odor of it, he didn't care but she did. So instead of kissing her on the lips, Sonic placed a kiss on her cheek.

"I love you, Tikal. I always will." Sonic rubbed Tikal's bare arm and kissed her on the cheek once again.

"I love you, too." Tikal wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his neck.

_"We'll always be together. Rouge may ruin everything else I've established but she can't ruin the love for my boyfriend and the love he has for me."_

**Or could she, Tikal ?**

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**A lot to handle in one chapter, isn't it ? But you can't blame me, I have a broad imagination. So if you like it, please review. Thank you. And for any of you who suffer from bulimia, I don't mean to insult you in anyway. Trust me. If I have, I apologize. It is a very serious disorder and I don't wish to mock it.**

**But please review.**


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